


Derek Hale, The Hero Beacon Hills Needs: Issue #2

by MellytheHun



Series: Derek Hale, The Hero Beacon Hills Needs [2]
Category: Teen Wolf (TV)
Genre: Angst, Flirting, Fluff, Humor, M/M, Romance, Tumblr Prompt, Tumblr Series
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-06-10
Updated: 2016-06-10
Packaged: 2018-07-14 07:31:04
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,026
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/7160129
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/MellytheHun/pseuds/MellytheHun
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Stiles goes to thank his hero.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Derek Hale, The Hero Beacon Hills Needs: Issue #2

_Hold Me, Thrill Me, Kiss Me_ by Mel Carter is playing from somewhere further in the loft, it smells like freshly baked banana bread and a beautiful, dark-haired woman is smiling knowingly at him.

“You must be Stiles,” she says.  


“The one and only,” Stiles answers, then adds, “at least… I mean, to my knowledge.”  


“You’re the one that fainted into my baby brother’s arms? Weird. You look sturdy enough,” she teases, giving his shoulder a push, as if to test him out.  


He doesn’t do more than wobble a little before laughing nervously and saying, “not really, I didn’t like _faint_ -faint. I just lost sensation in my knees for a short period. And ugly-cried. And made some animal noises. And blacked out towards the end of the night. I’m talking too much. This happens, when I’m uncomfortable. I say more than I mean to and I’m doing that right now. I brought flowers.”

He presents them, still outside the doorway. 

“I can’t imagine they’re for me,” the woman smirks, “For Derek, I presume?”  


“Uh, yeah,” Stiles replies, shifting on his feet nervously, “I’m, uh… I don’t know what the social protocol is for this? I asked my dad what you’re supposed to gift to someone who saved your life and he told me ‘develop a sense of self-preservation,’ but that’s just unrealistic, so I’m looking for something more materialistic and, uh, tangible. Does he… is this… oh my God, I feel so stupid -”  


“Don’t,” the woman smiles gladly, “I’m sure he’ll find them lovely. Why don’t you come inside, Stiles? My name is Laura.”  


“Hi, Laura,” Stiles greets properly, stepping inside after her, “Is he home?”  


“Not yet,” Laura says, lowering the music from iPod speakers on the kitchen counter, “But he should be back shortly. Take a seat at the table, Stiles. I’ll put these in water.”  


He nods and while her back is turned to the sink, he lets his eyes wander around the loft, looking to build some sort of casual profile. The main floor was quite nice; big windows, lots of natural light. An enormous bookcase that takes up the entirety of the far right wall, a big, comfy couch and loveseat with their backs to one of the shaded windows, a shining cocktail table, a big screen television. To the left of the entry way is the staircase, past the kitchen and dining area. He wonders what the second floor looks like.

“I didn’t even know this building was in use. The way you guys designed this loft is pretty sweet.”  


Laura laughs and says, “oh God, please say that in front of Derek when he gets here. He was a nightmare to furniture-shop with.”

Stiles smirks and replies, “sure thing. So, you’re Derek’s older sister?”

“Yes, sir, I am,” she answers, coming to sit at the kitchen table.  


She places a green vase on the far end of the table with the vibrant flowers somehow looking much prettier having been handled by Laura than when they were in Stiles’ awkward hands. 

“Does he, uh… he do a lot of rescuing around this part of town?”  


Laura laughs heartily, “not exactly. How old are you, Stiles?”

“Eighteen in April.”  


“Oh, Christ, this is the best day of my life.”  


Stiles cocks a brow at her, unable to understand why she seems so giddy. The loft doors open then and Derek is standing there in what appears to be the same leather jacket Stiles first saw him in and a bright blue v-neck. 

His clavicle is… distracting.

“Stiles,” Derek says a little breathlessly, as if rushed up the stairs.  


“Yes…”  


_why did i just say that what is wrong with me_

Laura laughs again and announces, “Stiles wanted to thank you for your heroics last week with some tiger lilies.”

Derek glares at her, but she only laughs again. 

“It was really no problem,” Derek grumbles to Laura before turning back to Stiles and saying gently, “Really. You didn’t have to do this.”  


“Well, dude, I mean, you didn’t _have to_ totally save my life, but here we are.”  


“I’m gonna leave you two alone,” Laura announces, moving across the floor gracefully.  


She picks up a purse hanging off the back of one of the dining chairs and slips on black flats at the door. She pats Derek’s shoulder, whispers something to him that makes him look sternly at her and then waves goodbye to Stiles, saying, “it was a pleasure meeting you, Stiles! Don’t be a stranger!”

As soon as the door is closed, Derek rubs the bridge of his nose and then looks up from under his thick eyelashes to meet Stiles’ stare.

“Hi,” Derek says.  


“Hi,” Stiles says back uselessly.  


They’re both quiet for a little longer, but where Derek is silent because he’s nervous, Stiles is silent because he’s building up courage and momentum.

“So, hear me out for a second…”  


Derek lifts his head and drops his hand, listening.

Stiles stands up and paces, “I told you what happened to me that night - you basically got a live stream of it while it was happening. I told the police what happened when they came, told the detective what happened when he wanted a recorded statement, told the nurses and doctors that helped me at the hospital, told my dad, told my best friend Scott - I told the story like a billion times since last week.”

“Okay…”  


“Okay, so, the more I told it, the less it sounded like a LifeTime Original Romance and a lot more like… I dunno. Like a superhero movie? But like, I missed the origin story…”  


He looks up to gauge Derek’s reaction, but all he can gather is ‘vaguely confused and slightly interested.’ Stiles can work with that.

“I _know_ my superheroes, okay, dude? Like, I am majorly educated in the Marvel Universe, but I’ve dipped my toes in the DC world and I can spot arch nemesis’s like no tomorrow, call every double agent at least six subplots before their reveal and dude, I know a redemption arc when I see one.”  


Stiles decides to walk over to Derek, since Derek appears to have frozen in place. He blushes - he was sort of hoping Derek was less handsome in broad daylight, but no such luck. When he comes up close to Derek, he gets lost in his eyes briefly - just for a moment in all that color. Seafoam, cobalt, jade and golden flecks, all swirling together. 

It’s a little intimidating to have it all focused on him.

“Don’t laugh at me, but…”  


There’s a few beats and then Stiles finally asks what he came here to ask.

“Are… are you a superhero?”  


He’s immensely relieved to see Derek take his question seriously and not laugh in his face. His brows are pinched and he’s sort of frowning, but he’s not calling Stiles a freak and kicking him out the door, so that’s good…

“No,” Derek answers apologetically, “No, I’m… not. I’m sorry.”  


Stiles tilts his head, smiling a bit, “don’t be sorry, dude. It’s fine if you’re not, but I feel like I need a little more convincing.”

“You feel like you need to be convinced that I’m _not_ a superhero?”  


“Yeah,” Stiles admits, “Look, what I saw last week - that was - that was like, _crazy_ , okay? That _was_ a horror movie opening and… maybe someone else would have hung up on me. Maybe if I had dialed just one number differently, I’d be pulverized meat on a cold, metal slab at the morgue right now. But, I dialed _you_ \- and you didn’t just call for help and hope for the best. _You_ came for me.”  


Derek blinks and Stiles feels a little power shift in his direction.

“ _You_. _You_ came to save me. To call the police wasn’t enough and ignoring me, for whatever reason, wasn’t an option for you. You saved me, Derek. You fuckin’ swept in at the eleventh hour, wrestled that psycho to the ground, beat him to a pulp and then carried me to safety, dude. That’s… that’s some superhero shit right there. And I _know_ my superhero shit.”  


Derek seems to consider Stiles for a few moments before asking, “what will convince you otherwise?”

“Well, let’s see - do you have a tragic backstory?”  


Derek’s scowl returns, which intimidates Stiles for a split second - Derek must sense his fear, because he schools his features quickly and says stiffly, “one might say that. Yes.”

Stiles frowns, unsure of what he had expected to hear. Apologizing feels like it’s in bad taste somehow.

“Uhm… do you… do you have an arch nemesis?”  


“…unofficially, I guess you could call it that.”  


Stiles crosses his arms, looking much more curious than sorry now.

“Were you ever betrayed by someone for their plot against you to work or used as a pawn by someone you once trusted?”  


“…yes.”  


“Do you have a very definitive moral code or strong opinions on what is just?”  


“You could say that, I guess, yeah.”  


“Do you struggle with feelings of guilt or responsibility for others?”  


“…I guess…”  


“Have you ever sacrificed yourself for one or more innocents or otherwise offered yourself or abilities to those inadvertently effected by you, your arch nemesis or the betrayal of another?”  


“…yes.”  


Stiles’ brows spring up and he finally asks, “…do you have any special abilities?”

Derek rolls his eyes and brushes past Stiles; Stiles can sense Derek’s tension. He feels a thrill run through him, even though the air has turned to something a little more dangerous than he had anticipated. 

“Everyone has special abilities.”  


“Yeah, but like, being ambidextrous is not what I’m getting at here.”  


Derek doesn’t face him; instead, he stares out of one of the big windows with his arms crossed over his chest.

“Do you have any powers that might be described as otherworldly? Preternatural?”  


Derek’s pause is too long.

All the air seems to leave Stiles at once.

“…you do, don’t you?”  


“I’m not a superhero, Stiles.”  


“Oh my God, you totally have superpowers - please, I finally know what genre my life is, please, please show me -”  


“This isn’t a _game_.”  


“I’m not saying it is! I’m serious! You’re an actual, real-life superhero!”  


“No, I’m not,” Derek says behind a mouth full of fangs.  


When he turns to face Stiles, his face is contorted, his eyes glowing incandescent aquamarine, his fingers have grown sharp claws and his ears have come to points. 

“I am _not_ a _hero_. I am not _super_.”  


“Y-you’re not exactly making a good case for that argument right now…”  


Derek approaches Stiles slowly, sneering, “…not so devastatingly handsome anymore, am I?”

Stiles doesn’t budge and - rather - he _smiles_. 

“Oh my God, dude, you’re seriously trying to drive me away with the ‘I’m too dangerous for you to care about’ schtick? You’ll have to do better, man. I know all the tropes. And frankly…”  


He reaches out tentative fingers and brushes away some stray hairs from Derek’s forehead. 

“I _do_ still think you’re handsome.”  


Derek’s face molds back into the one Stiles is most familiar with; his eyes are open, confused and curious. Very caught off guard. Stiles smiles warmly at him.

“I feel like I’ve been training my whole life for this moment, dude. Just… let me in. What are you?”  


Derek doesn’t reply and while Stiles’ eyes flicker back and forth between Derek’s, he remembers Derek’s joke from the week before.

_“if only you were a scantily clad woman, then everything would add up.”_

“Oh my God… you’re… are you… are you seriously a werewolf?”  


“You know, you were wrong, Stiles.”  


Stiles’ face is hot and his heart is thumping too loudly. Derek gives him just a ghost of a smile and says, “you _are_ interesting enough to be a main character.”

They stare into each other’s eyes for a long few moments and Stiles vows to himself there and then that whatever direction the story of his life is going, he’ll follow it if Derek Hale is _his_ hero and he’ll be the lead so long as Derek is there to keep him safe.


End file.
